That's a fair but lacking description of the festival, but only because the programming isn't bounded by much other than the desire to explore. MusicNOW has showcased numerous flavors of World music, often new avant Chamber/Classical works, a "who's who" of the top names in "Indie" music (Sufjan Stevens, St. Vincent, The National, Bon Iver, Andrew Bird, Grizzly Bear), a few legends (Philip Glass, Kronos Quartet) and newer and/or more obscure artists, meshing together to offer Cincinnati music fans (and the many who come in from out of town) a truly unique musical experience. Sold out audiences have seen one-off performances and collaborations, including commissioned works and world premieres.

Below is a sampling of some of the artists featured this weekend — though with MusicNOW's encouragement of experimentalism, take it as merely a surface introduction. The artists will more likely go beyond any pigeonhole you can come up with, which is the best thing about MusicNOW.

• Tonight's kick-off is headlined by Anti- recording artists Tinariwen, a Malian ensemble whose creative North African sounds resulted in a Grammy in 2012 for its fifth album, Tassili. Read CityBeat's interview with Tinariwen founder Ibrahim Ag Alhabib (via translated email exchange) here.

Here's the official video for Tassili track "Iswegh Attay" (with translation!):

• Arcade Fire member Richard Reed Parry has been a part of several MusicNOW festivals, composing commissioned works and playing with bands like Little Scream and Bell Orchestre. This year, Reed Parry will perform the songs of his Indie Folk project, Quiet River of Dust. The project made it's live debut at the National-curated All Tomorrow's Parties fest in the U.K. late last year (where Reed Parry performed three very different sets) and a recording is presently in the works. A review from the music blog Let's Get Cynical described it as "a quirky and engaging performance – the first song I hear is about a boy who gets lost at sea and turns into a fish, if you want some sort of indication of what we’re working with. The fact that this is the trio’s first ever show also highlights ATP as the kind of festival where you get to see things you don’t get anywhere else." Kinda like MusicNOW.

• Rounding out tonight's opener is Buse and Gase, the Brooklyn duo of Arone Dyer and Aron Sanchez, who make trippy avant grade music on various handmade instruments. The group name actually comes from two of those instruments — the "buke" is described as a "six-string baritone ukulele" and the "gase" is a guitar/bass guitar combo. 

Here's Buse and Gase's official clip for the tune "General Dome."

• Saturday's headliner is MusicNOW 2013's most known performer, Glen Hansard. The Irish singer/songwriter began catching attention as a member of the group The Frames, then broke out on his own and won an Academy Award for "Best Original Song" in 2008 for "Falling Slowly" from the film Once, in which he also starred. Hansard's first solo album, Rhythm and Repose, was released last summer on the Anti- label (album bonus track "Come Away to the Water" was, oddly enough, covered by Maroon 5 and Rozzi Crane on the soundtrack to the blockbuster film The Hunger Games).

Here's the video for "High Hope" off of Hansard's solo debut. 

• Saturday will also feature the performance of new works composed by Dessner, Reed Parry and Serbian composer Aleksanda Vreblov. The new pieces will be performed by the Brooklyn Youth Chorus, which has collaborated with everyone from the New York Philharmonic and Cincinnati native (and Jazz piano master) Fred Hersch to Lou Reed, Barbara Streisand and Talib Kweli. The organization works often with composers on new pieces. 

Here's a clip of Dessner working with the Chorus on the piece "Tell the Way" in 2011. 

The Chorus will be joined by young string ensemble The Ariel Quartet, which formed in Israel and moved to the States in 2004. Last year, the group was named "quartet-in-residence" at the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music. The quartet has won numerous international awards for its work and has performed all over the world. Also lending a hand with the new works is Shara Worden of MusicNOW vets My Brightest Diamond. 

Below is a clip of the Ariel Quartet performing Mozart.

• Last year, music now featured pioneering composer Philip Glass. This year, Steve Reich plays the role of "legend" on the bill. The Guardian's Andrew Clements once wrote that "There's just a handful of living composers who can legitimately claim to have altered the direction of musical history. Steve Reich is one of them," while many others consider Reich one of the world's greatest living composers. Reich's experiments have been fearless and creatively fruitful and influential, be it his early work with tape loops or his interactive "Clapping Music," a 1972 piece performed entirely with handclaps.

Reich will join Sō Percussion for a performance of that piece and more, including a new commission from Daníel Bjarnason (the annual Esme Kenney Commission, named for a young student from School for Creative and Performing Arts student who was murdered in 2009). The Brooklyn-based modern percussion group (featuring Eric Beach, Josh Quillen, Adam Sliwinski and Jason Treuting) formed about a decade ago around the collective influence of pioneering NeoClassical experimentalists like Reich, John Cage, Kronos Quartet and others. Sō has commissioned works from numerous composers and has also been acclaimed for its own compositions. Outside of the modern Classical world, the ensemble has collaborated with artists like Medeski, Martin and Wood, Matmos and Dan Deacon. 

Here's a cool mini-documentary from PitchforkTV about Reich and featuring Sō Percussion.

The three days of music are held at Memorial Hall, next to Music Hall, but this year there will also be an art exhibition at another great, vintage Over-the-Rhine venue, The Emery Theatre. An exhibit of works by Nathlie Provosty and Jessie Henson will be up at the Theatre Friday, 4-7 p.m., Saturday, 12-4 p.m. and Sunday, 1-7 p.m. Bryce Dessner will perform at a "gallery party" on Sunday 4-6 p.m. The Emery happenings are free and open to the public. 

Click here for ticketing and further info.

This weekend's big Western & Southern Open tennis tourney (kicking off at 10 a.m. tomorrow at the Linder Family Tennis Center in Mason) won't have world-class champs like Rafael Nadal and Maria Sharapova (who've both dropped out in the past couple of days).

But the event WILL feature several world-class local music champs who will provide tunes between matches throughout the entire event. (Oh, and a bunch of really good tennis-ball hitters will still be showing up.)

Think tennis and music should never mix? Well, Bieber clearly gets it (see pic above). And you obviously haven't seen this.

Here's the schedule of musical acts (presented in conjunction with CityBeat), for those planning to attend. (Schedule courtesy of Game Day Communications).

Saturday, Aug. 11: Jake Evans (10:45 to 11:30 a.m.)

Sunday, Aug. 12: Michael McIntire (10:45 to 11:30 a.m); Michael McIntire and Marmalade Brigade (12-2 p.m.)

Monday, Aug. 13: Andyman Hopkins (10:45 to 11:30 a.m.); Brad Loans of The Sundresses (12-2 p.m.); Andyman Hopkins (5 to 7 p.m.)

Tuesday, Aug. 14: Carole Walker Luley (10:45 to 11:30 a.m.); Hickory Robot (12 to 2 p.m.); Jeremy Pinnell & the 55’s (5 to 7 p.m.)

Wednesday, Aug. 15: Sean Geil of The Tillers (10:45 to 11:30 a.m.); The Cla-Zels (12 to 2 p.m.); Blake Taylor of 46 Long (5 to 7 p.m.)

Thursday, Aug. 16: Shiny Old Soul (10:45 to 11:30 a.m. and 12 to 2 p.m.); Young Heirlooms (5 to 7 p.m.)

Friday, Aug. 17: Colin Shoff (10:45 to 11:30 a.m.); Faux Frenchmen (12 to 2 p.m.); The Shivering Timbers (5 to 7 p.m.)

Saturday, Aug. 18: The Sunburners (6 to 8 p.m.)

Sunday, Aug. 19: Newburg Trio (10 a.m. to 12 p.m.)

In other Tennis/music news, Tennis — one of Meghan McCain's favorite bands — is playing the MidPoint Music Festival on Sept. 29. Tickets on sale now! (See what I did there?)

Details for the first two big local music festivals of 2011 have been announced. The One More Girl on a Stage fest returns Jan. 21 and 22 to Newport’s York Street Café for the Rivertown Music Club’s last ever event, while the Cincy Blues Society’s annual Winter Blues Fest takes over the Southgate House Jan. 28 and 29.

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MusicNOW kicked off last night with performances from Fleet Foxes’ frontdude Robin Pecknold, who apparently played a solo acoustic set of new material (I arrived just as he was finishing), and Joanna Newsom, whose intricate songs proved the perfect aesthetic match to the ornate Memorial Hall.

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Next weekend, the Lollapalooza music festival returns to Chicago for its 20th anniversary extravaganza. CityBeat will have some reporters in the field covering the event, but most of us don't have the money for such a costly road trip this year. Thankfully, you can have a sort of "virtual reality" audio experience of Lollapalooza without leaving your bed or sweating more than a boxer in the final round. And you can do it all in under an hour.

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After two days of driving in the Vanarama — a 1996 GMC Rally 3500 in school-bus yellow — we're only about 3.5 hours outside of Austin.

This is the second time I've made the trek to SXSW, but every time I make the four-state drive, a few things remain constant: Arkansas highways suck and everything truly is bigger in Texas.

On the last stretch of 11 South, as you approach Crockett, Texas, road signs alternate between "Cemetery" and "Forest." This wouldn't have been so intimidating if we hadn't exchanged ghost stories about dead relatives and scary camping trips (Google "Appalachian Trail" and "scary photos"). We then stayed in a hotel that we seriously scoured for bed bugs before bringing in our gear. But cheap is worth it, right?

We are by no means alone in this endeavor. Thousands of bands travel across the country and the world, whether or not they're "officially" a part of the festival. This is the biggest weekend of the year for bands — whether they're on the rise or struggling to get a fresh start — and they'll do whatever it takes to be heard.

Tuesday (today) marks the beginning of the SXSW (as far as the music portion). The All Night Party's Midwest by Southwest showcase kicks off tonight and will feature some of our hometown favorites, including The Sundresses, The Lions Rampant, Wussy and The Seedy Seeds.

This official showcase is an anticipated event, not only for us Cincinnatians, but also the locals. The Austin Chronicle has named Wussy as one of the top 10 shows to see Tuesday. (Scroll to the bottom of the link for the Wussy write-up,.)

We're not even in Austin yet and Cincinnati's already making headlines at SXSW.

The 2010 MidPoint Music Festival is finally upon us. In fact, it actually kicks off at noon today on the outdoor plaza outside the Main Public Library at Ninth and Vine streets with local Americana/Roots favorites Magnolia Mountain. Should be a hot start to a long, action-packed weekend. Literally.

If you're looking for last-minute updates and answers to your questions, you can stop by the MidPoint World Headquarters across from the library at Garfield Suites Hotel (Vine Street and Garfield Place). They'll be open for business by noon today. The MidPoint web site is a good spot for daily schedules, venue details, maps, Metro shuttle bus info and everything else.

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What to Bring (Allowed Items)

1. Sun Gear (e.g., sunglasses, sunscreen, etc.)
2. Seating (e.g., folding chair*, blanket, etc.)
3. Bug Repellent (no Deet)
4. Rain Gear (ponchos are best, but small hand-held umbrellas are OK)
5. Earplugs
6. Baby strollers
7. Empty water bottled (no glass) or Cambelbak
8. Binoculars
9. Wall mounted rapid charger (charging stations provide iPhone and mini-USB chords, but if you have your own chord, you won't have to wait)

* Sand chair with seat no more than 9" off the ground.

What NOT to Bring (Prohibited Items)

1. Weapons, fireworks or explosives of any kind
2. Illegal substances (including narcotics) or drug paraphernalia
3. Framed or large backpacks
4. Glass containers of any kind or coolers
5. Food, beverages or Cambelbaks that are full
6. Carts, bicycles, skateboards, scooters, or personal motorized vehicles (including Segways)
• There is bike/scooter parking outside the event site
7. Tents, large umbrellas or chairs that are NOT sand chairs (seat more than 9" off the ground)
8. Pets (except service dogs)
9. Any audio recording, professional camera or video equipment
10. Moshing, crowd surfing, and/or stage diving
11. Vending without a Bunbury license or permit
12. Bills over $20.00. We won't accept them at the beverage booths.

All subject to change. Festival organizers reserve the right to prohibit any item that isn't listed.

Stay Hydrated

Keeping hydrated by drinking plenty of water throughout the day. Cincinnati in July can be hot. It’s quite a distance from one end of the park to the other. Considering all the walking, dancing, etc., you’ll need to make this a priority. Take advantage of the water stations. (NOTE: As mentioned above, don't bring water, but you can bring an empty container to fill throughout the weekend.)

Kids

We love kids. LOVE THEM! (NOTE: Kids 10 and under admitted free with a paid adult.) There are; however, some tips for those families who plan on coming to Bunbury:

1. Re-read the the first part of this page. Sunscreen, staying hydrated, etc. is even more important for kids.
2. A stroller or small wagon is permitted. The park is large, kids will get tired and you don’t want to carry them.
3. Head phones or ear plugs for ear protection.
4. A first aid kit; Band-Aids and Neosporin always come in handy.
5. Baby wipes are awesome. Even if you don’t have a kid they can be great to have!
6. Feeding your baby formula? Please use plastic bottles with disposable liner bags.

 

For a limited time (while supplies last, as they say), seriously discounted tickets for the MidPoint Music Festival — which returns to the clubs and venues of Over-the-Rhine/Downtown Sept. 26-28 — will be made available starting this Friday at 10 a.m.

During this “Loyalty Presale,” three-day “All Music Access” passes can be purchased through mpmf.cincyticket.com (the site will be live for the public tomorrow) for just $49 (they’ll be $20 more come MPMF time). They are expected to sell out fast, so get ’em while you can. For those wanting a VIP MPMF experience, the popular VIP passes will also be available Friday for $129 ($40 off the normal price). The VIP tickets get you priority admission to all shows, access to catered VIP-only events and other goodies. (Last year’s VIP passes sold out before the fest.)

In other MPMF news, if you are a musician/performer interested in being considered for a showcase slot at the festival, submissions are now being accepted via Sonicbids. The submission fee is just $20 until this Friday; after that it goes up to $25. (Those without a Sonicbids account can submit to MPMF and receive a two-week free trial of the service.)

Stay tuned to MPMF.com and this blog for the latest updates on MidPoint.